The kinetic energy (KE) of conventional projectiles, for example standard mortar rounds, may be varied by tailoring the amount of propellant that is associated with each projectile before firing. This may require different internal propellant loads produced during manufacture or the use of auxiliary propellant charges, where possible.
In mortar rounds, the projectiles and auxiliary propellant charges are generally separate from one another before firing. The auxiliary propellant is typically provided in a number of small parcels that may be supplied in different volumes or in the same volume for incremental use. Depending on the range that is required, the mortar operator manually attaches one or more parcels providing the appropriate amount of propellant to the mortar round before insertion into a tube or barrel for firing. This procedure also considerably slows the rate of fire that can be achieved by the weapon and is prone to human error when loading.
It will be appreciated that a more cost effective, convenient and reliable arrangement for varying the kinetic energy of projectiles is desirable, particularly where a high rate of fire is required. Particularly where the projectile firing weapon is of the type including a plurality of rounds stacked in a barrel for sequential firing and required to be remotely controlled. It would be of further advantage if the construction of individual rounds was substantially homogeneous.